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Six thirty on a Tuesday evening and the city was starting to die slowly. Office workers and retailers shut their doors and headed home to friends or family. Only the lonely lingered around the quiet streets, looking for a pub or nightclub open and with any sort of crowd, preferably of the opposite sex.

John Young had nothing and no one to go home to; his girlfriend of two years left him three months ago and moved to Sydney with her best friend from high school. He’d lingered around work until the last of his colleagues went home. Being the start of the week, nobody seemed interested in a night out, so he would be drinking alone, again.

It was still light outside and he knew that the chances of the bars being busy now were next to nothing. The best option he could think of was the pub, Charlottes, where there might be a musician playing. Tanya, the skanky blonde at work with a body to die for, teased him about this place. She often said, “You going to Charlottes to pick up some harlots tonight, Johnny?” He hadn’t picked up anyone since the break up; he thought he must have been sending out too many depressed vibes to the ladies. Even Tanya, who flirted with him when he had a partner, stopped now. Tony thought single men weren’t a challenge to her; she must have liked the challenge of bedding only those who should accept her offers.

Tony lit a Winfield Blue and began the walk that he could do blindfolded now. The chalkboard at the front indicated that Rusty and the Ayers Rockettes were playing tonight. At least that was something. They played a lot of classic rock, like Cold Chisel, Steve Earl, ZZ Top, and The Eagles, as well as a collection of humorous originals like Leprosy and Joh. This would dull the pain until the scotch kicked in and he became so inebriated that he would pass out on a park bench or somewhere just as public.

He sat at the bar, his usual spot, ordered a straight scotch, lit another cigarette and looked at his watch. He could tell it was going to be a long night; he’d felt particularly depressed today.

“Got a light,” a sensual and dangerous voice said.

Tony turned around and faced the owner of the voice. Dressed in a dark burgundy, sleeveless dress was a curvy woman in her mid twenties. She had long black hair and full set of lips that the words seemed to hang from.

“Sure,” Tony said, flipping his brass Zippo open.

“Thanks,” she said, “I’m Eva.”

“Pleased to meet you. My name’s Tony.”

“I’ve seen you here the last few nights. You must have shares in this place.”

Tony smiled and raised his glass, “I should have by now.”

“Look, I don’t like wasting words, so let’s get straight to the point. Do you want to come back to my place? We can get better acquainted there and it is much quieter.”

Tony almost said nothing; he was too stunned at the offer, but didn’t want to miss a chance like this.

“Sounds like a good idea. Music is way too loud.”

Eva smiled at him and he almost lost his dignity right there and then. She touched his hand tenderly and led him outside and across the road to the taxi rank. There were no cabs there but Eva didn’t seem to mind. She pressed up against Tony, her soft lips pressed against his, and her sweet tongue darted in and out of his mouth. Tony took in her taste, her scent and the warmth of her body, close against his. After being a born again virgin for the last three months, not by choice mind you, Tony had forgotten how good it felt being intimate with a woman. He did remember the smell of the perfume Eva wore; his girlfriend used to wear the same brand, Poison, he remembered it was called.

A car horn broke the moment.

“You want a ride?” the Indian cab driver called out.

“Sure,” Eva said and hoped in the back seat. She left her legs open longer than needed, showing Tony the sexy black lace panties he would be getting in shortly.Tony smiled and slid in next to Eva and they began kissing passionately after Eva told the driver her address. The drive Eva’s house at the Gap took no time at all, even for the peeping tom cabbie, who almost had three accidents from looking at the action in the back seat rather than watching the road.

She led Tony down a dark and windy path to her front door. Tony walked into a large spider’s web. It felt stronger than any spider’s web he had felt before.

“You got something against lights?” he said.

“No, they just seem to blow every night.”

Tony waited eagerly as Eva fumbled with her keys in the dark. Once inside, she led him to a large fur rug on the floor in the lounge room.

“Have you made love on the floor in front of a fire place before?”

“Can’t say that I have.”

She kissed him, then lit the logs. The warmth of the open fire was nice and the soft orange flames were enchanting. The atmosphere felt more, erotic and sensual to Tony somehow. She unbuckled his belt and slide her hand down the front of his trousers, gently caressing him. They slowly undressed each other and made love in front of the crackling fire.

After talking and making love again and again for hours Tony said, “I suppose I should go home soon?”

“No, please don’t go, stay the night.”

“Okay.”

“Thank you. Usually, if a guy leaves before the morning, I never see him again.”They moved to the bedroom, made love again, then Tony fell asleep Eva’s arms. Eva stayed awake for a little while longer. An uneasy feeling washed over her, as if someone watched her.

Outside Eva’s bedroom window, a black spider the size of a Rottweiler peered in. It seemed annoyed that dinner would not be walking out the door tonight.

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